2 South Korean Students Living In S'pore Bring Harufilm Photobooth To Nus Campus

"You guys have never started a business before. Why would I risk myself to work with you guys?"

These were the harsh words of one business owner to Jennifer Lee, 23, and Kim Hyomin, 22 — two budding entrepreneurs.

The pair were then seeking a partnership to bring Korean photo booths to their school, the National University of Singapore (NUS).

If you haven’t already noticed, Korean-inspired selfie booths have become a common sight in Singapore in recent years.

But for Lee and Kim, both originally from South Korea, they felt they could contribute their own style to the landscape.

Having experienced numerous Korean photo booths back in their homeland, they wanted to introduce an authentic Korean-branded photo booth to the place they now call home.

In particular, they hoped to bring one right into NUS, where they are currently Year 3 students.

What photographs mean

Most people would agree that photographs are meant to preserve memories.

For Lee and Kim, however, they also value how the process of taking photographs creates new memories in itself.

Kim confessed that she rarely takes selfies or photos with her family and friends during casual outings.

Having photo booths, therefore, makes it easier for them to intentionally take photos and capture memories.

In particular, she often brings her grandmother to photo booths whenever she visits her hometown of Busan, South Korea.

"It's funny because it's very much a youth culture thing, but it's our special way of capturing memories together," she laughed.

"I would just walk with her along the beach and take her to the photo booth and be like, 'Oh, let's capture our moments together.'. And she enjoys it very much."

As for Lee, she shared that her room now has over 100 photostrips from various photo booths in Singapore and Korea.

"Whenever I go into my room, I'm reminded of the good memories, and that these are the people I cherish around me," she said.

More than just the photos (and looking good in them), Lee said the entire experience — going to photo booths with friends, printing the photos, collecting them, looking at them, and scanning the QR code for the soft copy — is something they can always look back on.

Ambitions

When they set out to start their own photo booth venture, it wasn’t simply an idea born out of wanting one on campus.

Both had similar entrepreneurial aspirations, which they discovered when they first met in Year 1.

In fact, Kim had written on her bucket list that she wanted to start a business in her twenties.

Lee’s ambition grew from a semester in Paris under the NUS Overseas Colleges (NOC) programme, where she worked at a start-up.

Shortly after Lee returned to Singapore in June 2025, the two friends began to actualise their business idea.

Rough beginnings

The beginning wasn’t easy, as expected.

Beyond reaching out to the school to propose their idea and securing a lease for the space, they also had to partner with a Korean photobooth brand as franchisees.

Along the way, they faced many rejections.

"Some of the people saw us as inexperienced," Kim said, recalling the aforementioned encounter with the man who openly asked why he should risk his business to work with them.

To add insult to injury, he even suggested that they work at one of his shops during the summer holidays.

Rather than feeling dejected, this further motivated them.

"We're still young, we're still students, but at the same time, we're still very strong. We have this ambition, and we wanted to show the strength of being a young student — it's not a disadvantage," Kim said.

Finding a brand to work with

As students using their own savings to start the business, they had a limited budget.

This made negotiations with potential brands more challenging.

After several discussions, they eventually found a willing partner in Harufilm, a popular self-photo booth brand known for its pastel blue and soft aesthetic.

Then came another hurdle.

There were competing business proposals for the same NUS space they wanted to lease, so the pair had to wait for the school’s decision.

"So we had this anxiety going on from going back and forth, because we had to sign the contract with the photo booth side, but at the same time, you have to make sure that we can actually start in school and our business proposal can be chosen," Kim said.

Learning along the way

After securing the lease and receiving the photo booth machine, they had to design the booth’s exterior themselves.

Kim, an Architecture major, played a key role here.

She designed the booth from scratch before sending it to a supplier for construction.

After that, they set up the booth themselves and even painted it on their own.

"We learned a lot. I think we're like painters now, we're electricians. We did everything," Lee laughed.

As a Business Analytics major, Lee focuses on the administrative and financial aspects of the business.

When I pointed out how well they complement each other, Kim agreed, noting that it helps that they have "different strengths".

"Because Jenny is good with the business analytics side and I'm better with the design, we really complement each other, and we see this as a strength, like we appreciate each other very much, and we have admiration for each other."

Even when disagreements arise, the pair resolve them quickly, especially since their roles do not overlap significantly.

Juggling studies

The past few months of intense preparation were further complicated by their academic commitments.

Although they are taking only four modules this semester, they still have assignments and examinations to manage.

The photobooth machine arrived just as they were preparing for midterms and completing assignments, Lee said.

As a result, they had to divide their time between setting up the business and studying.

How did they balance both? I asked.

"You just have to do it," Lee said.

"You have to learn to prioritise and almost have to segmentize your brain, and then just when you're doing one thing, focus on it."

Focus, however, was something they struggled with, as thoughts about the business often crept in while they were studying.

"While we're on our laptop, we still think about, 'Oh, but we have to solve this tomorrow. We have to do this, we have to do that, and we still have to sort this out before our opening day. All these thoughts were really uneasy," they said.

What success means

After almost nine months of planning and preparation, the pair launched their photobooth on Mar. 2.

Seeing their dream come to life brought a mix of emotions — anticipation, relief, and happiness.

"I'm really glad that we started this together, because I don't think I can do it by myself," Lee said.

They remain committed to this venture. In fact, Lee decided to forgo an exchange programme to stay in Singapore and manage the business if needed.

They also hope to expand by opening more booths across Singapore.

But when it comes to defining success, they do not do it strictly by numbers.

Taking that risk — stepping out of their comfort zone and seeing their first booth up and running — already counts as a win for them.

"I think we already made a big step into our success by challenging ourselves beyond academics and trying something new," Kim said.

Harufilm

Location: NUS University Town Stephen Riady Centre Level 1

Opening hours: Daily, 24/7

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by HARUFILM SG (@harufilm.sg)

Top photos courtesy of Jennifer Lee and Kim Hyomin